1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image-forming device for forming images on a recording medium.
2. Related Art
There have been proposed multifunctional image-forming devices that include a printer function, a facsimile function, a copier function, and the like. One such image-forming device well known in the art is provided with an inkjet printing unit on its lower frame and a flatbed scanning unit on its upper frame. The flatbed scanning unit has an image-scanning function implemented by a contact image sensor (CIS), a charge-coupled device (CCD), or the like.
For example, an image-forming device disclosed in Japanese unexamined patent application publication No. 2003-298790 includes a main casing (lower frame) formed with a discharge opening in its front side, a printing unit disposed in the main casing and including an inkjet head for ejecting ink onto a recording sheet, a backward-tilting sheet supply tray disposed on the rear side of the main casing, an ink cartridge for storing ink to be supplied to the inkjet head, and a scanner disposed on top of the main casing.
The inkjet head is a serial-type inkjet head capable of reciprocal movement in a right and left direction (widthwise direction of recording sheet) orthogonal to the front-to-rear direction in which a recording sheet is transported. In this image-forming device, a recording sheet is stacked at a downward slant in the sheet supply tray. An image is formed on the recording sheet as the sheet is conveyed in a substantially horizontal orientation past the printing unit in the main casing. The recording sheet is subsequently discharged frontward through the discharge opening. The ink cartridge is inserted through the front side of the main casing below the discharge opening.
The scanner includes a flatbed scanning unit having a close-contact type image sensor, a flatbed glass on which an original document is placed, and a cover that covers the top surface of the flatbed glass. The flatbed scanning unit is configured to pivot toward the top surface of the sheet supply tray about a pivotal axis on the rear end. The image sensor extends in a direction orthogonal to the pivotal axis and is supported on a base member positioned directly beneath the image sensor. The image sensor moves together with the base member in a direction parallel to the pivotal axis.
The image-forming device further includes a media board disposed on the side of the discharge opening. The media board is provided with media slots through which an external storage medium can be inserted.
On the other hand, an image-forming device disclosed in Japanese patent No. 3376216 has an upper frame, a lower frame, and a sheet supply tray disposed in the bottom of the lower frame. The sheet supply tray can be pulled out of the lower frame in order to stack sheets of cut paper therein. A recording sheet is conveyed to a printing unit along a conveying path that doubles back in a sideways U-shape. After an image is formed on the recording sheet in the printing unit, the sheet is discharged out of the device in a substantially horizontal orientation.
The upper frame is mounted on the lower frame so as to be able to open and close with respect to the lower frame so that pivoting the upper frame upward reveals a large area on the top surface of the lower frame. This construction facilitates operations for clearing paper jams occurring along the sheet conveying path and for replacing ink cartridges accommodated in the lower frame, as well as aids the operator in seeing the objects of these operations. A line-type image sensor in a scanning unit is configured to scan an original document one line at a time while being moved in a direction orthogonal to the pivotal axis of the upper frame.
In such image forming devices, wiring is required for transmitting signals from the scanning unit to a control board disposed in the lower frame (main casing). Since the image-forming devices disclosed in Japanese unexamined patent application publication No. 2003-298790 and Japanese patent No. 3376216 are configured so that the scanning unit or the upper frame supporting the scanning unit can open wide with respect to the lower frame (main casing) supporting the printing unit, it is necessary to prevent the wiring from getting in the way of clearing of paper jam and maintenance operations when the scanning unit or the upper frame is in an open state.
To this effect, it is preferable to connect the image sensor to the control board in the following manner. That is, the control board is disposed on the other side of the pivotal axis from the image sensor in the lower frame (main casing) just below the pivotal axis such that a side of the control board runs parallel to the pivotal axis. Then, one end of the flexible flat cable is connected to a longitudinal side of the image sensor, and the other end of the flexible flat cable is connected to the side of the control board parallel to the pivotal axis. The flexible flat cable extends in a direction in which the image sensor moves and across the pivotal axis.